The Dealmaster’s Steelcase escapades

Task chairs, office chairs, and a fancy stool—and plenty of other stuff, too!

Here at Dealmaster Central, we find ourselves seated for big chunks of the day, scouring the Internet for deals. Quality seating is important—a computer chair that fits your body is one of the most important things you can spend money on. To that end, our partners at LogicBuy have collected a number of deals on Steelcase chairs for this Tuesday Dealmaster posting. The top deal is a discount on a Leap, an excellent office chair (I used one for many, many years). The model listed below comes without arms, but the discount scales appropriately if you add them on at checkout. There are a number of other deals on fine seating at the bottom of the list.

If chairs aren't your thing, maybe something else below might catch your eye! Of particular interest might be the 60-inch Samsung UN60ES6500 3D LED TV—it's the same price as you'd find it elsewhere, but it includes a $600 Dell gift card, too. Might be a good excuse to upgrade your TV and buy some new 3D BluRays to watch on it!

28 Reader Comments

Even with Ghostery turned off (and boy did it complain about these links!) I can't click the link for the Inspiron. It just opens a tab and then closes, complaining about something called 'blah' in a null domain.

Even with Ghostery turned off (and boy did it complain about these links!) I can't click the link for the Inspiron. It just opens a tab and then closes, complaining about something called 'blah' in a null domain.

It's trying to save you from buying an Inspiron...get a Latitude or an XPS. You won't regret it.

Even with Ghostery turned off (and boy did it complain about these links!) I can't click the link for the Inspiron. It just opens a tab and then closes, complaining about something called 'blah' in a null domain.

It's trying to save you from buying an Inspiron...get a Latitude or an XPS. You won't regret it.

Why get a steelcase over an aeron, which I think is actually cheaper from the same website?

The Leap feels much more comfortable to me than the Aeron, and is better for my back. In order to get the Aeron to keep pressure on my back while sitting forward from a reclining position, you have to increase pressure so that it's hard to go back in the first place (and hard to stay reclined -- if you lift your feet up you are thrown forward). The Leap stays in any reclined position I want without requiring me to keep pressure on it (I can even lift my feet off the floor), while still supporting my back when I sit back up from a reclined position.

Also, I've had 3 Aerons break on me in a row. I set the tilt limiter on them (the part that keeps you from tilting back too far) and after a year or two, suddenly I hear a pop and I'm practically laying back on the floor. It's not worth the trouble to get it fixed.

Why get a steelcase over an aeron, which I think is actually cheaper from the same website?

The Leap feels much more comfortable to me than the Aeron, and is better for my back. In order to get the Aeron to keep pressure on my back while sitting forward from a reclining position, you have to increase pressure so that it's hard to go back in the first place (and hard to stay reclined -- if you lift your feet up you are thrown forward). The Leap stays in any reclined position I want without requiring me to keep pressure on it (I can even lift my feet off the floor), while still supporting my back when I sit back up from a reclined position.

Also, I've had 3 Aerons break on me in a row. I set the tilt limiter on them (the part that keeps you from tilting back too far) and after a year or two, suddenly I hear a pop and I'm practically laying back on the floor. It's not worth the trouble to get it fixed.

Had tried one of those Steelcase High-Back Leap Chairs, not worth it really. You can (or could) get essentially the same chair at Sams club (or at least could a while back, don't know about now) for almost $400.00 less and its more comfortable and comes with arms. I'd recommend people shop around some more.

Their bolding, not mine. But good point on the arms, I wish Ars explicitly pointed this out in their descriptions.

Not to mention that the shipping for this linked Herman Miller chair is apparently $75. I'm not saying it isn't cheaper, but it's not as much cheaper as it might look at first glance, even before you get to any caveats that apply with it not being from an authorized dealer.

Why get a steelcase over an aeron, which I think is actually cheaper from the same website?

The Leap feels much more comfortable to me than the Aeron, and is better for my back. In order to get the Aeron to keep pressure on my back while sitting forward from a reclining position, you have to increase pressure so that it's hard to go back in the first place (and hard to stay reclined -- if you lift your feet up you are thrown forward). The Leap stays in any reclined position I want without requiring me to keep pressure on it (I can even lift my feet off the floor), while still supporting my back when I sit back up from a reclined position.

Also, I've had 3 Aerons break on me in a row. I set the tilt limiter on them (the part that keeps you from tilting back too far) and after a year or two, suddenly I hear a pop and I'm practically laying back on the floor. It's not worth the trouble to get it fixed.

I see. Thanks for the follow up.

No problem. I suppose I should include the disclaimer that the Aerons in question were bought about 8 or 9 years ago now, so they may have improved during that time, whereas I've only had the Leap for a year now. Herman Miller also has several other improved lines as well. In the end, it's a very personal choice. I visited a Healthy Back store and sat in 20+ different chairs before deciding on the Leap.

I am utterly confused about the market for that ultrawide 1792x768 Toshiba laptop. You can't really stand it on its side to read Facebook, and it takes the 16:9 problem to absurd extremes in an era when UIs are still built for 4:3, or at best 16:10 occasionally. Finding good software that adequately uses the sides is nearly impossible, and unless all you watch is old Cinemascope films, there's zero content consumption argument.

I am utterly confused about the market for that ultrawide 1792x768 Toshiba laptop. You can't really stand it on its side to read Facebook, and it takes the 16:9 problem to absurd extremes in an era when UIs are still built for 4:3, or at best 16:10 occasionally. Finding good software that adequately uses the sides is nearly impossible, and unless all you watch is old Cinemascope films, there's zero content consumption argument.

More total screen area without being too tall to tilt comfortably when the person in the airliner seat in front of you is reclined?

With Win8.1 (blue) letting you have two apps of aribtrary width next to each other, being able to run a normal widescreen video at full height while having something else (a message/chat app?) running beside it might be useful.

No problem. I suppose I should include the disclaimer that the Aerons in question were bought about 8 or 9 years ago now, so they may have improved during that time, whereas I've only had the Leap for a year now. Herman Miller also has several other improved lines as well. In the end, it's a very personal choice. I visited a Healthy Back store and sat in 20+ different chairs before deciding on the Leap.

Thanks for the namedrop. Those chairs are all more than I'm willing to pay based on nothing but internet reviews and my prior efforts to find any retail locations that carry them failed. While they don't have any locations local to me, there're at least 2 close enough to trips I might make once a year to be worth a detour to check them out.

More total screen area without being too tall to tilt comfortably when the person in the airliner seat in front of you is reclined?

With Win8.1 (blue) letting you have two apps of aribtrary width next to each other, being able to run a normal widescreen video at full height while having something else (a message/chat app?) running beside it might be useful.

The price of $692 for that chair is if you don't include arms. The price is $800 if you are all lazy and shit and want arms on your chair. Not a great buy, IMO.

Here is a much better buy. I have this at my office, and it's awesome:

The arms are not the point. The Leap is a completely different design than any Herman Miller chair.

Typical chairs adjust into one fixed configuration; the Leap is made to let you lean back and sit up at any angle and provide perfect S-curve support, and the way it pivots you can move around and your hands never change place. It's by far the best chair I've ever owned or sat in, including that one Herman Miller.

That said, I went to a standing desk. So, no more chairs for me. If I were to own a chair, the Leap is the one.

I am sorry as this sounds trollish, but I have a hard time reading an article that starts with a completely inappropriate verb. "Hear at Dealmaster Central, we find ourselves"... Shouldn't that be 'Here'? Is there a proof reader in the house?

Why get a steelcase over an aeron, which I think is actually cheaper from the same website?

The Leap feels much more comfortable to me than the Aeron, and is better for my back. In order to get the Aeron to keep pressure on my back while sitting forward from a reclining position, you have to increase pressure so that it's hard to go back in the first place (and hard to stay reclined -- if you lift your feet up you are thrown forward). The Leap stays in any reclined position I want without requiring me to keep pressure on it (I can even lift my feet off the floor), while still supporting my back when I sit back up from a reclined position.

Also, I've had 3 Aerons break on me in a row. I set the tilt limiter on them (the part that keeps you from tilting back too far) and after a year or two, suddenly I hear a pop and I'm practically laying back on the floor. It's not worth the trouble to get it fixed.

Can't speak specifically to Aerons, but if you can't get it fixed under warranty within a week, you need to buy from somebody else. For that matter, don't buy them online - find an independent dealer and work with them. You can even be a cheapskate, just don't be a dick, and you can get a good deal and have someone that can take care of it under warranty if it breaks.

I know these things, I work for a company that has an office furniture arm (not Steelcase or Herman Miller, as they were already entrenched with their single dealers in the area by the time the company I work for came along.)

Lee Hutchinson / Lee is the Senior Reviews Editor at Ars and is responsible for the product news and reviews section. He also knows stuff about enterprise storage, security, and manned space flight. Lee is based in Houston, TX.